eBothy Blog

With the high pressure still going strong over the northern Highlands, I headed out with Dawn for the Blaven – Clach Glas ridge. This is perhaps one of the best mountaineering days to be had in the UK. Top end scrambling with graded rock climbing thrown in. I say graded but it’s only Moderate (Inn Pinn standard) and Diff. You can miss out the Diff section, the classic finish up the 18m chimney onto Blaven, by taking easier but less interesting routes, graded Moderate. (more…)

I was reading the Scottish Mountaineering Incidents report on the MC of S website and among the various and interesting statistics that were inferred and deduced from the raw rescue data were these “facts”.

• Scrambling is the most “dangerous” activity an outdoors enthusiast can do. You’re more likely to end up as jam but only if you’re a young male.
• Rock climbing is tending more and more towards indoor climbing.
• Snow and ice climbing, based on current global warming predictions and associated rescue and participation data will be extinct in Scotland within the next 10 years.
• More and more people are hillwalking although the percentage of walkers being involved in callouts is more or less constant. (more…)

With the severe gales and rain forecast, myself and Allan decided to wait until later for our foray into the Mamores for a high camp and instead, I had a day of micro-nav practice on the moorland in Sleat. I was quite interested to see what the landscape was like out on the moor as the Gaelic names mentioned rushes and willow, not to mention bog and moorland. So it would be interesting to see what was out there. (more…)

I had a day off work on Monday and the forecast was rather interesting. Sleet and snow down to 600m with the certainty of snow showers at 900m, so I headed for Glen Shiel and Sgurr an Doire Leathainn, at 1010m, intent on getting the first snow of the year. (more…)

Following on from the last snow post, I was up on Sgurr Doire an Leathainn on the South Shiel ridge yesterday, in mini blizzards. (more…)

I’ve been trawling through my work blog, looking for weather posts, as I didn’t have this blog back then. It’s interesting to see the variation. (more…)

I read Cameron McNeish’s editorial in TGO a while ago about the Alladale Wilderness Reserve that’s being proposed by a millionaire landowner in the northern highlands. Then I read Andy Howell’s thoughts on the matter. (more…)

I’ve just heard from HF, based on feedback from Glencoe, that I’ve been upgraded from E* to F*. (more…)